The Redgate Read On Online Learning

The demand for online distance learning for K-12 has increased exponentially over the last several years.  It’s so interesting to watch how this internet-delivered educational phenomena is transcending itself to the elementary and high school levels.  A recent Sloan Consortium reports that there are 700,000 K-12 students who took at least one online or blended course. 

In fact, in my current role at Liberty University, my colleague Ron Kennedy (www.ronaldkennedy.com) and I have helped to launch an online academy for grades 3 - 12, the Liberty University Online Academy.   Feel free to visit our the web site at www.libertyonlineacademy.com.  We are beginning to see quite a bit of interest generated as we gear up for fall enrollment.  Do you know that other universities like Texas Tech, University of Miami, and Stanford each have online programs for young people?  Other organizations like Keystone High School and Florida Virtual School boast enrollment into the tens of thousands. 

The basic value proposition of online distance education across all age groups - access to quality higher education offerings removed from the limitations of time and location - is growing the demand for higher education in the U.S. and worldwide. With markets no longer defined by geography, the trend toward internet-delivered distance education is leading a new era of growth and competition in higher education as the quality and supply of online distance-education courses grow.

Just two weeks ago, our daughter, Christina, graduated from the College of William and Mary with a degree in elementary education and history.  The picture here is of Christina on graduation day, with her proud mom and dad, standing in front of the Wren Building on the campus of William and Mary.  Interesting note for all you history buffs — the Wren Building is the oldest academic building in the United States which is still in use today.  The Redgate family has certainly had its share of educational experiences, milestones, accomplishments, and tuition payments:

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As a member of the United States Distance Learning Association (USDLA), I receive up to date industry information and articles.  I received an email yesterday that contained an interesting article entitled, “COMPUTER-BASED LEARNING COULD TRANSFORM PUBLIC EDUCATION WITHIN A DECADE THROUGH DISRUPTIVE INNOVATION.”  I  have posted several relevant excerpts that point to not only a continuing acceptance of online learning, but a possible adoption of online learning into traditional public education models — both secondary and post-secondary: 

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The Eduventures Online Higher Education Learning Collaborative (OHE-LC), of which I participate in, is a member-based research consortium designed to help universities and colleges grow their online enrollments, develop strategies for online higher education, and make their online operations more efficient and effective.  Eduventure’s new study, to be released in October,  will provide unprecedented benchmarking data about operational issues and processes that affect online degree and certificate programs, including program marketing, curriculum and program development, academic and student support services, faculty training and development, IT support services, and enrollment management.

What will this mean to the online student or prospective student considering online educational options?  It will be the first report of its kind that will hopefully analyze operational data, provide concrete evaluations of best practices, and allow students to evaluate online schools that have implemented these best practices.

For those of us in this space, maybe it will jump start a move toward — what I have been advocating as this space becomes more competitive – ”enhancing the online student’s experience.”  I really think that the foundation to all of this is very simple but, at times, hard for those in academic circles to comprehend.  That is, “IF YOU CAN’T MEASURE IT, DON’T DO IT.”  It is tempting to add these ancillary programs with hopes of improving retention, experience, and enrollments or just keeping up with what other schools are doing.  But if we are not committed to measuring the effectiveness of these programs, we shouldn’t do them - period.

Liberty University’s Class of 2008 was the largest graduating class in the history of Liberty University with 4,805 members, compared with 3,598 graduates in the class of 2007.  Of the 4,805, over 2800 were Distance Learning students.  Over 20,000 people attended the ceremony this past Saturday which was held in LU’s Williams Football Stadium. 

The significant growth of Liberty’s Distance Learning Program, combined with a unrelenting commitment to quality, has contributed to this outstanding number of graduates.   I have said it from the start, the future of online learning will focus on quality and performance indicators just like our resident counterparts.  Of course, online education always be convenient, flexible, and generally more affordable than traditional brick and mortar but, for those of us in the market, we will continue to see trending toward indicators like graduation rates, student services, employment numbers etc. — and we must be prepared.